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Library of climate resources

This is a collection of links to climate datasets, tools, guidance and related resources. The sources include the federal government, provincial and territorial governments, national professional organizations, climate consortia and established international organizations. It can be useful for impact, vulnerability and risk assessments, and for adaptation planning.

Refine your search using the search filters. You can also type up to 5 keywords in the search bar.

The Climate Atlas of Canada is an interactive tool developed for users to learn about climate change in Canada. It combines climate science, mapping and storytelling. The primary source of climate model data presented in maps, charts and tables is the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium. Statistically downscaled data was derived from 12 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) global climate models for two emissions scenarios: Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5. For comparative purposes, observed data are included in all time-series graphs for the period 1950-2005. The source of the observed data used in the Atlas is Natural Resources Canada.

Climate Data for Nova Scotia includes information on maximum temperatures, minimum temperatures, precipitation, extreme precipitation and growing season length, broken up into different regions of Nova Scotia. Each region has historical data for a 30-year baseline period (1961-90 is used here) and future projections to the end of the century (2100). Future projections are based on 30-year time periods: 2020s, 2050s, and 2080s. This information was generated by the Meteorological Service of Canada at Environment and Climate Change Canada and uses a statistical downscaling method of results from the Canadian Global Climate Model (CGCM1).

ClimateNA extracts and downscales PRISM 1971-2000 monthly climate normal data and monthly solar radiation normal data (4km x 4km) to scale-free point locations in North America, and calculates seasonal and annual climate variables for specific locations based on latitude, longitude and elevation (optional). Climate projections are available for Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5 under climate models for the 2025, 2055, and 2085 time periods. Data are spatially projected onto a map, and could be appended onto a CSV file for download.

AdaptWest provides modelled climate projections generated using the ClimateNA software, downscaled from the Coupled Climate Model Comparison Phase 5 (CMIP5) database. Variables include mean and extreme estimates of temperature and precipitation, growing and cooling degree days, snowfall, evapotranspiration, and drought indices. Data are available from individual models or a 15-model ensemble at a 1km resolution for North America as well as individual states and provinces to a horizon year of 2050, available for download in grid or tabular formats.

Find local data is a search tool that allows users to find climate data. Users can search by geographic location, municipality, and region across Canada. Data available include several climate variables, projected over 2021-2050 and 2051-2080, under two emission scenarios, and at annual or seasonal resolutions. Future data are available as point data.

The Forest Change Data Catalogue includes downscaled climate projections using various climate models as well as data on drought, fire, forest communities, and tree distribution. Data are also available on other topics including regional fire risk and evacuations, species-specific vulnerability to climate change, and provenance trial data with respect to climate change. Point and gridded data are available for both historical and future periods.

Statistically downscaled scenarios, which provide finer resolution scenarios of climate change from coarser resolution GCM output, are available based on model output from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). Individual model results of minimum temperature, maximum temperature and total precipitation are available for historical (1950-2005) and future (2006-2100) time periods. Gridded projections are at a daily temporal resolution and at a spatial resolution of approximately 10km. Future projections are based on the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) scenarios.

Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium (PCIC) offers statistically downscaled daily Canada-wide climate scenarios, at a gridded resolution of 300 arc-seconds (0.0833 degrees, or roughly 6 km x 10 km) for the period 1950-2100. The variables available include daily minimum temperature, maximum temperature, and precipitation. Users may access the scenarios using an interactive map interface that allows users to zoom, pan and select their region of interest using a rectangular-selection tool. Downscaled climate data is available for over 10 models under Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5. Data are available for download in NetCDF, ASCII, and Arc formats.

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